Gin-chan with the silver hair
by Kirabera
Summary: Ever wondered where the name Yorozuya Gin-chan came from? A headcanon on how Gintoki came up with the name for his Odd-Jobs business. A little bit of a dive into the early family-like relationship between Gintoki and Otose and how Gintoki began the Yorozuya. Friendship/family only. Has OCs.


It was a fresh spring day in the town of Kabukicho. The early afternoon sun shone brightly through soft clouds. The streets were alive and bustling with the sound of shop owners selling their merchandise and patrons haggling prices. An old lady stepped out from her shop and put out her shop sign.

"My, my, so it's springtime already? The seasons certainly do pass by quickly when you're at this age…"

Standing relaxed and comfortable outside her shop, the old lady lit up a cigarette. "Snack Otose", read the storefront, and the owner of this snack bar gazed pleasantly at the people passing by.

"Otose!"

At the sound of her name, the snack bar owner turned to see a petite-looking older woman walking towards her shop. Otose smiled at the older woman.

"My, if it isn't Okiku-san! It's been a long time since I've seen you in these parts. Are you passing by?" Otose greeted the older woman warmly.

The older woman, Okiku, smiled and shook her head.

"No, no, Otose. I came here looking for you today. My health has not been the best as of late, so I have not been visiting Kabukicho much, but today, I'm afraid I'm here for something important." replied Okiku.

Otose took a long drag from her cigarette and gave Okiku a questioning yet concerned look. Exhaling the fumes, Otose motioned towards the snack bar.

"Well, Okiku-san, come on in. I'm not sure what troubles you, but I'll lend an ear and see what I can do."

* * *

Otose served some freshly brewed tea for her old friend. The older Okiku settled on the couch and cradled her cup of hot tea. Lighting up another cigarette, Otose gave Okiku a worried look.

"Okiku-san, for you to come to me at my shop, it must be something quite troublesome. You call me once in a while, but I haven't seen you come here in many years." said Otose.

"You're right, I haven't come here in a very long time. I recall I used to come here every other night, when my husband would be here drinking away and I would come to get him… He really did love your shop, Otose." Okiku replied. She took a sip from her cup. "It really has been many years, hasn't it?"

"Stop it, Okiku-san. You know better than to reminisce on the past. It makes us age faster, you know." Otose inhaled and blew out smoke. "Don't you have a grandson, Okiku-san? How is he doing?"

"The truth is, Otose, the reason why I came to you today is because of my grandson." Okiku sighed. "As you know, I've been raising Susumu on my own… He's had no father figure to teach him right from wrong, and now that he's at a difficult age, it might be too late… Otose, you've been living in this town for a long time, you've seen both people who've made a good living for themselves and people who've taken the wrong path and ended up in a worse place than before they came to this town. I don't want my grandson to take the wrong turn in life, but I'm not sure what I can do…"

"I wouldn't know, Okiku-san. I've never had kids of my own, after all. And if you're talking about our younger days, then things are different now. Kids will be kids; if he won't listen to you, then he won't listen to anyone else, no matter who it is."

"That's not always true, Otose. He may not listen to me, but it seems he listened to his friends and joined a gang. He's too young to know what he's doing, but I don't know how to stop him from taking the wrong path…"

Okiku shook her head sadly. Her eyes were clouded with worry.

"Men are old enough to make decisions for themselves and know what they're doing once they start growing hair in their crotch, old lady." a voice interjected.

A young man emerged from the back of the shop. A head of silver curls, a pair of lazy-looking maroon eyes. Dressed in a simple pale kimono and a red scarf, the young samurai carried a wooden sword at his waist.

"Pour me some tea, baa-san! I'm hungover and my head hurts." the samurai muttered, exhausted and half-asleep.

Otose served the young man some tea as he took a seat at the bar. Propping his lazy face on his hand, he took a sip of steaming hot tea and helped himself to some snacks on the counter.

"What time do you think it is, Gintoki? You said you'd help out at the bar, but I've yet to see you show your face before noon." complained a mildly-irritated Otose.

"Shut up, baa-san. Your bar never gets customers during the day anyway, and you do all of the cleaning yourself, so I just need to be here in the evening to prepare some snacks or pour some drinks here and there, right? Leave me alone during the day."

"If it's a customer you're talking about, then we've got one right here." Otose motioned towards Okiku, who gave Gintoki a warm grandmother-like smile. Otose continued on to lecture the hungover samurai who had no interest in listening. "Anyone who comes through those curtains is a customer, and listening to my customers' problems and trying to offer them solutions is my job as the owner. If you're going to work here, then you should learn some manners and learn to care more about our customers, Gintoki."

"Who said I was working for you, old hag? I only said I'd help out sometimes to pay you back for letting me stay here." Gintoki muttered in annoyance. Rustling his soft silver curls with one hand and reaching for more snacks with the other, Gintoki turned to face the older woman, Okiku. "So, your grandson's joined a gang, was it? What do you want to do about it, old lady?"

Okiku looked down sadly at her tea. Tears welled up in her eyes.

"My grandson's name is Susumu. We live together, just the two of us. Susumu grew up without parents; his mother died when he was a baby and his father, my son, joined the war when Susumu was but a young child. My husband and I took care of Susumu together, but after my son died in the war, my husband fell ill and passed away not long after… Susumu was left with only me as his family from a young age. I've tried my best to raise him into a fine man, but I'm growing old… I am struggling to keep him on the right path, but it's become more and more difficult to stop him from meeting the wrong people, especially ever since Susumu had met some men who offered him a job here in Kabukicho, likely to work for the gang he eventually joined. He has only recently turned fourteen, but lately he has been staying out late and meeting up with some suspicious men. When I tried to talk to him about it, all he would say is that he is independent now and that I should not be concerning myself with what he chooses to do…"

Okiku's voice trailed off. Drops of tears fell onto her soft wool kimono. Gintoki glanced at the old woman as she weeped silently.

"Your grandson, where does he meet his gang?" asked Gintoki casually, almost indifferently.

"I don't know. I only know that he said he started working for the Akagumagumi here in Kabukicho." replied Okiku, her wrinkled brow furrowing in worry.

"Oi, Gintoki, are you planning on going alone? It could be dangerous." said Otose, voicing her concern for the samurai.

Gintoki downed his tea in one gulp. He glanced at the two old ladies in his presence and gave them a lazy smile.

"Baa-san, thanks for the tea. My hangover's good as gone now, so I'm gonna head out for a walk. Maybe I'll go babysit a grandkid or two while I'm out. Old ladies like you should stay put and reminisce about the past and complain about the kids these days or something. I'll be back before you know it." said Gintoki as he headed for the door.

"Gintarou-kun…" Okiku began, but Gintoki waved her worries away with an annoyed grin.

"My name's Gintoki, old lady. I'm just going to get your grandson for a bit. See ya."

* * *

"Um, excuse me - "

A group of men gathered around in an old warehouse. Some of them men wore swords around their waists while others carried smaller knives. Motorbikes were parked near the entrance of the warehouse. The members of this biker gang looked up at the sound of a stranger's voice coming from the entrance of the warehouse. There stood a silver-haired wooden-sworded samurai picking his nose.

"Who the hell are you?" yelled one of the thugs in the warehouse. A few others quickly gripped the swords at their waists, ready to draw.

"Excuse me, but I'm looking for a kid." answered Gintoki casually. "Do you guys know a Susumu-kun here? His granny sent me to come collect him for dinner. I think it's for a birthday party or somethi-"

"Are you messing with us, you bastard?" shouted the thug. He drew his sword and turned the blade towards Gintoki. The rest of the gang surrounded Gintoki immediately. A young teen stepped forward from the group and drew his tanto.

"I don't know who sent you, but you should leave before you get hurt, nii-san yo. I'm not going anywhere. I don't know what granny told you, but these guys are taking care of me. All I gotta do is run some errands for them and I'll get paid well! So what if sometimes I end up committing some petty crimes! I can take care of granny with the money I'm making! I'm independent now!" yelled the young teen.

Gintoki glanced indifferently at the teen, then at the thugs that surrounded him. Suddenly, he focused his eyes and drew his wooden sword.

"Well, I only expected to babysit one bad kid today, but if all of you punks want to play, then I'm down for that too…" Gintoki gripped his wooden blade and smirked at the thugs around him. "Bring it!"

* * *

Moments later, the gang of thugs lay defeated on the floor, groaning in pain. Gintoki walked over to the teen, Susumu, who was no less beat up than the rest of the gang, and picked him up by the collar. Gintoki looked straight into the teen's eyes in an annoyed anger.

"I don't care who you think you are, punk, but as far as I'm concerned, you're the beloved grandson of a poor old lady who's worried sick about you. I don't care where you got the stupid idea of joining a gang and working for them to make money to take care of your granny and be independent, but you've got it all wrong. You're making your granny cry, you damn punk." said Gintoki sternly. He let go of Susumu and shot a threatening glance at the rest of the thugs.

"I'm taking this kid with me. He's quitting your Akaguma Gang or whatever. If you've got a problem with it then come find me. I'll hand your asses to you all over again any time."

Gintoki sashed his wooden sword and made his way out of the warehouse. A hesitant Susumu watched as the silver-haired samurai walked off, unsure of whether or not to follow.

_You're making your granny cry, you damn punk._

Gritting his teeth, Susumu got to his feet and ran after Gintoki. Catching up to the samurai, the panting teen called out to Gintoki.

"Nii-san! Wait!" called Susumu.

Gintoki stopped and turned around. His piercing eyes from earlier returned to their usual lazy, half-open state.

"Ah? What do you want?" replied Gintoki, annoyed.

"Granny… How do you know about granny? I had no idea she was so worried about me…" muttered Susumu, remorseful and ashamed.

"Don't lie, kid. You knew full well she was worried." Gintoki snapped in response. He sighed. Looking at the young teen who was on the verge of tears, he softened his eyes. "Your granny didn't know what to do with you. She turned to an old friend to ask for advice but ended up sitting there in tears because of you. How long are you going to keep making your granny cry? When you were a young child, she spent her days doing everything to make you laugh and smile. Now that you're a young man, aren't you going to make her smile in return? That's what it means to be an adult, isn't it?"

The young teen looked up at Gintoki, speechless. Gintoki continued with his lecturing.

"If you want to show your granny that you're a real adult and that you're independent, then stop doing things that'll worry her. Go get a real job and make money to take care of your granny. You don't need to make a fortune. As long as you're working hard and not doing anything shady, even if you barely manage to feed yourself, your granny will still be proud of you. But if you make lots of money by joining a gang and committing crimes, no matter how much money you give your granny, she'll still be crying."

Tears streamed down Susumu's face. The young teen became choked with tears and couldn't speak. He nodded, sobbing quietly.

Gintoki smiled. He gave the teen an encouraging pat on the back.

"Let's go. Your granny is waiting for you."

* * *

"I'm really sorry!" cried Susumu, bowing on his knees with his head against the floor. The teen apologized between sobs as his grandmother smiled with tears in her eyes.

"It's all right, Susumu. As long as you're home safe now and you're never doing something like that again." said Okiku, relieved of her worry.

"I promise I'll get a proper job and work hard!" exclaimed the crying teen.

Otose smiled at the older woman and her grandson as they hugged each other. She turned to Gintoki and gave a nod of approval.

"Well done, Gintoki. I didn't think you'd actually give the kid a beating, though." laughed Otose.

"Shut it, old hag." Gintoki retorted halfheartedly. "Well, I'm no good at working at your bar, but I guess I can do some odd jobs for you once in a while.

Okiku smiled warmly at Gintoki.

"Thank you for bringing my grandson back, Ginichirou-kun." the old woman thanked Gintoki with sincerity, her head bowed lightly.

"No need to thank me, old lady. And my name's Gintoki." replied Gintoki, annoyed.

"Ah, my memory is bad due to my old age, Ginpachi-kun."

"Like I said, my name's Gintoki!"

"That's too difficult for an old lady like me to remember. Can I call you Gin? Gin-chan with the silver hair?"

Gintoki looked at the old woman with an annoyed expression as she smiled warmly at him. He ruffled his hair in frustration.

"Damn it, old lady, don't go around changing people's names will you? But I guess it doesn't matter what you want to call me…" muttered Gintoki.

Susumu turned to Gintoki and bowed respectfully.

"I'm really sorry for all the trouble I've caused you, Gin-san. I promise I will take good care of granny from now on!" said Susumu.

Gintoki sighed, then turned his annoyed expression into a slight smile.

"Yeah, yeah. Do your best, kid."

* * *

The seasons passed in the blink of an eye. Otose breathed in the cool autumn air as she put out her shop sign and curtain. As she watched the busy streets of Kabukicho in the late afternoon, she noticed a familiar face approaching her snack bar.

"Otose!" greeted Okiku.

"My, Okiku-san. Welcome!" Otose greeted warmly.

Otose invited her old friend into the shop for some tea and snacks. The older woman seemed to be in better health after several months.

"So your grandson's found a construction job and he's becoming an apprentice? That's good to hear! And he's also bringing home some money to take care of you, too. He's grown into a fine young man, hasn't he?" said Otose with a smile.

"It would not have happened if not for that young man working for you, Otose." replied Okiku.

The shop's door slid open, and a head of silver natural-permed hair greeted the two old ladies.

"Oi, baa-san - " Gintoki greeted Otose. Noticing the visitor in the bar, he gave a smile and a casual nod towards the old woman. "Oh, the old lady's here. What is it? I hope your grandson isn't causing you more trouble, is he?"

"No, no, he's settled down with a job now!" replied Okiku happily. "All thanks to you! Ah… what was it again…"

The old woman furrowed her brow as she tried her best to remember the samurai's name. Gintoki grinned.

"Gin-chan. Yorozuya Gin-chan!" answered Gintoki. "From walking your dog to babysitting your grandkids, Yorozuya Gin-chan will do whatever you request!" Gintoki handed the old woman a business card. "Yorozuya Gin-chan, Sakata Gintoki. Remember it well, old lady! And give me some business sometime!"

"Ah, that's right! Gin-chan with the silver hair!" said Okiku with a light chuckle.

Gintoki turned to Otose.

"Oi, baa-san, I'm working late tonight, so I won't be dropping by later. Save me some food, will you?"

"Sure, I'll go upstairs and leave it in the kitchen for you. Don't stay out too late!" replied Otose.

Gintoki smiled and waved as thanks. With that, the silver-haired samurai left the snack bar as suddenly as he entered. Otose smiled as she watched Gintoki close the door behind him.

_"Oi, baa-san. Rent me your second floor."_

_"Huh?"_

_"The second floor. You're just using it for storage anyway, right? Rent it to me."_

_"Why would I rent it to you? You'd never pay rent even if I did! Besides, you've already got that spare room on the bottom floor right now anyway. What do you need the second floor for?"_

_"I'm not cut out to help you with your bar, and there are no jobs I'm really interested in doing. There's nothing I really want to do. So I'm going to do anything and everything."_

_"Ah? What are you talking about?"_

_"People like me aren't good at anything in particular… Or maybe I guess I should say that the one thing I'm good at is something that's not necessary anymore. Times are changing. Samurai can't make a living by just being samurai. So I've decided, baa-san. I'm going to start up an odd-jobs business, and I'm going to help people in whatever ways I can. It's better than sitting here and staying under your roof without even working for you properly."_

_"Gintoki, you know I'm not letting you stay here just because I want you to pay me back."_

_"I know. Don't worry, baa-san. I'll pay rent once my business gets up and running. I'll pay you properly every month, and I'll even pay you back for the months you've been letting me stay here. I promise."_

_"Hum. Well, I'm not expecting much, but if that's what you want to do, Gintoki, then go and do it. I'll be waiting for you to pay rent!"_

"Well, Otose, I should get going now, too." said Okiku. "Thank you again for everything."

Otose smiled, her attention brought back to the present from her flashback from several months ago.

"Take care, Okiku-san. Come visit again anytime." replied Otose.

As Okiku left Snack Otose, she noticed a new signboard on the second floor of the snack bar.

"Yorozuya Gin-chan..." the little old lady exclaimed as she read the signboard. "Ah, that's right! Yorozuya Gin-chan with the silver hair!"

* * *

Notes: Please note that "baa-san" is used in order to differentiate Gintoki's more polite way of addressing Otose-san from his current habit of calling her "babaa" ("old hag"). It's shown that in more serious scenes, Gintoki does refer to Otose as "baa-san", so I imagine that at the early days of their relationship, Gintoki might have called her "baa-san" much more than "babaa". "Old lady" ("obaa-san"), used here to refer to the OC Okiku-san, is a more generic form of address that's used towards older women in general, usually grandmothers; the one noticeable difference in Japanese, though, would be that Gintoki refers to Otose simply as THE "baa-san", whereas any other old lady would be AN "obaa-san".


End file.
